Jenscot Akitas

Fern, Ch. Tanglmuir Barr’s Miracle got her registered name from the veterinarian in Scotland who saved her life.

At four weeks she developed a mild parvo virus infection and had an intussusception. This is where the small or large intestine rolls in on itself and is life threatening. It usually occurs in the ileo-colic area and surgery is necessary. Any problem that disrupts the normal intestinal peristalsis (movement), such as viral (parvo, etc), parasites, foreign bodies can cause this problem.

Fern had surgery at 4 weeks and Dr. Barr saved her life, thus becoming part of her name. She is still going strong at 10.5 years.  I mention this as we do see this problem in puppies and if not treated they can die.  Even with treatment, the problem can reoccur.   An ultrasound can diagnose the problem rapidly.

Akitas and many large breed dogs can get a disease called “Bloat”which can lead to “GDV” or Gastric Dilatation and Volvulus.  It is potentially fatal.  Owners should be aware of the signs (symptoms) of this disease.  Many times a dog will act uncomfortable, try to vomit,  may vomit, and the abdomen can become very large.  Immediate veterinary assistance is necessary to save the dog’s life.   I personally lost my first Akita, Ginjen, to bloat.  She was only 9 years old and in her case stress was involved.  My daughter came home from prom and saw her in distress, stomach very distended.  We rushed her to our veterinary clinic but it was too late.  Below is the latest information we know about bloat and possible contributing factors.

Purdue Bloat Study

Recent studies are shedding more light on gastric dilatation volvulus (GDV), otherwise known as bloat. GDV is the second leading cause of death in large-breed (50 – 99 pounds) and giant-breed (100 pounds and over) dogs. Approximately one in four large-breed dogs and one in five giant-breed dogs may develop GDV during their lifetime, with some breeds at even higher lifetime risk. GDV strikes suddenly and has a mortality rate as high as 30 percent. Read the rest of this entry »

Stuart brought Fern from Scotland when she was almost 5 years old.  She finished her championship and on her first breeding she had some problems.  She was pregnant, we saw embryonic vesicles.  A week later she had a bloody discharge, aborted the feti and we cultured bacteria.  We treated Fern with antibiotics and she was bred successfully on her next season, having a total of three litters past the age of  five years old.

A consciencious breeder  must follow the Akita Club of America’s ethics (http://www.akitaclub.org/procedures/ethics.html).  Our responsibility as breeders is to breed the healthiest Akitas who most typifies our standard.   Each female and male are screened for hip dysplasia, eye diseases and thyroid disease.  These are the basics.  I would also recommend that an older bitch have a complete blood panel and  a check up with your veterinarian or reproductive vet to make sure she is in good shape and healthy enough to breed.  Fertility decreases with age after about 4 years in Akitas. That gives breeders plenty of time to get the necessary genetic testing.  Older Akitas may have more problems whelping, and neonatal mortality increases with the age of the Akita. 

Rebecca Kestle, DVM

This is Bristol test.

Well, Koda is doing great. The kids were excited, and couldn’t believe he was ours to keep I’ve attached a few pictures from his first evening. He cried when we had him in the kennel, so we moved him to our bathroom thinking he is used to a larger space Well, he still cried, so I laid down with him, and he went right to sleep. He awoke at 3:00 for a potty break, and when I layed with him again, he went right to sleep.

Monday, he was in the kitchen area and laundry room. He did great - no accidents, in fact he used his pee pad at one point Of course, the kids played with him a lot in the afternoon and tired him out. We kept him in the laundry room, since this is where he seems most comfortable, for the night and he never woke up.

When I wake the kids in the morning, I just plop Koda on their heads and they wake up in a great mood. If I had tried this with any other thing, they would whine and be in a bad mood all day. So, if nothing else, the mood in the house is much better with our new addition.

We love him, and he is doing great.

Thanks,
Suzanne

3/15/09  Cinnamon’s new owners give us an update! Pups are now 10 weeks old.

I just wanted to let you know that the puppy is doing great..  We have had a break through… Dolce (oh yeah, we changed her name for convenience…Dolce is Italian for sweet and rolls off the tongue much easier) sleeps outside the kennel in our room and has not gone potty once at night. In fact she woke us up last night around 1 AM to go to out and she went.  She’s  become one of the family.  We weighed her on Wednesday and she was 20.6 lbs.  Also she has one ear popping up a bit and the other one laying down still

Chuck

Our pick female, Bossy is staying with us. It was so hard to decide, all three female puppies were nice. Minda Akitas is getting the pick female of their choice. Female C is now home with the Danburys. She could easily be a show pup but am so glad she has found this wonderful pet home. They have named her Cinnamon Sugar Bear. Chuck told us he could not sleep the night before picking her up. He was that excited. Keely Dwyer felt exactly the same. It was such a good day, getting hugs and thanks for new akita puppies. I had met the Dwyer’s a few years ago when their older akita needed to be boarded and they put their trust in my veterinary clinic. Their new puppy, Zeus, is a welcomed addition to their family of two boys, one getting ready to be drafted by the NFL. Cowboy was supposed to go to my daughter Jenny but her new work schedule prompted us to let him go to a family with children, the Zalars. They had lost their 12 year old akita exactly a year ago on March 7th. What a surprise for their two children!!!
I am so excited that the puppies have such wonderful homes. Just one puppy left.

Will you take me home?

We have one more female puppy that needs a home! She is a longcoated female born 1/2/09. This litter is Ch. Bristol and Ch. Kes.

This beautiful female long haired Akita needs a home.

This cute little puppy needs a home.

We currently use Blackwood 2000 for our puppy food. There are many good foods on the market but we are concerned that they should not have artificial ingredients and should be high quality. Puppies should not grow too fast as they can develop bone/joint diseases if pushed to grow too fast. We feed all of our dogs twice daily, with puppies up to 10 weeks getting three meals a day, 7:30 am, 5 pm and 10 pm. We mix in canned food at the 5 pm feeding. We also do give our dogs cooked meat that we eat and it has been proven that this along with some canned food mixed in with the kibble or dry food helps prevent bloat. We also do not excercise right after eating.